Soundwave Nightclub Fire Research Paper

Between 1976-1988 there had been various house fires at different locations. By 1985, there had been evidence of more than 52 fires caused by the product. After hearing the report, Kevin Cummins stated “I strongly believe there is nothing Mistral can do, except recall all units”. In 1988, two children were killed in a house fire started by the fan. This created a public warning about the faulty model. Senior executives noted that the manufacturing process was not of high quality, and the plastic case surrounding the fan was combustible. Instead of reporting to the public, Mistral tried to protect its corporate image at the expense of public safety. In addition, management gave misleading figures about the number of fans that had caught fire,

Their reasoning for this was that the average cost of the retrofit was usually no less that two million dollars in cost. Ultimately, it took another loss of life and injury causing fire to force these retrofits to take place. While the state of Nevada and the rest of the world was still caught in the wake of the MGM Grand fire, an arsonist set fire to the Las Vegas Hilton Casino on February 10, 1981. Eight people perished and more than 200 were injured. Opposition to the expensive retrofitting disappeared.

In West Warwick Rhode Island, on February 20th, 2003, during the performance of the band Great White, a fire broke out that eventually claimed the lives of 100 people and injured an additional 200. The band’s tour manager arranged for, and ignited pyrotechnic props, large fireworks designed to display a shower of sparks. The sparks ignited foam soundproofing near stage. The fire spread quickly. Most were killed either in the crush to exit the building or overcome by fumes while trying to find an exit. The immediate cause was well documented due to witness reports and a videotape that was taken during the concert. In the period that followed the tragedy there were many attempts to fix blame. Following a Grand Jury

Just four months before the Triangle Factory fire, a four- story factory fire in Newark occurred on November 25, 1910. This time, 25 factory workers died, six of the workers burned to death, and 19 jumped to their deaths. After this fire, New York City Fire Chief Croker warned: "This city may have a fire as deadly

In the aftermath of the disturbance, four inmates lay dead, 29 injured and four guards assaulted. Administrators estimated the damage at

2749 people died in accidents, including office workers, managers, chefs, waiters, cooks, police, fire, and paramedics.

The Station nightclub fire occurred on February 20, 2003, in West Warwick, RI. The fourth deadliest nightclub fire in U.S. history, a blaze at The Station nightclub in W. Warwick, RI, on February 20, 2003. The fire was caused by pyrotechnics set off by the tour manager of the evening 's headlining band Great White, which ignited flammable sound insulation polyurethane foam in the walls and ceilings surrounding the stage. By this time, the nightclub 's fire alarm had been activated, and although there were four possible exits, most people headed for the front door through which they had entered. The rapidly moving fire with intense black smoke engulfed the club in less than 6 minutes. Video footage of the fire shows its ignition, rapid growth, the heavy smoke quickly made escape impossible, and the exit blockage that further hindered evacuation. The ensuing stampede led to a crush in the narrow hallway leading to that exit, quickly blocking the exit completely and resulting in numerous deaths and injuries among the patrons and staff. The toxic smoke, heat and the stampede of people toward the exits killed 100; 230 were injured and another 132 escaped uninjured. A total of 462 people were in the club, even though the club 's official licensed capacity was 404

The Local, State and Federal agencies were called to investigate the Station Nightclub fire incident and they found many issues. The polyurethane foam that was on the interior walls was the major factor in the Station Nightclub fire. It was easily ignited and also contributed to a faster fire spread within the building. According to NFPA 101, Life Safety Code, the interior finish is required to be Class A or B for general assembly areas with occupant loads of more than 300. It has been calculated that the number of occupants at the Station Nightclub was around 440-458 people, obviously well over this limit. The ignition of polyurethane foam gave out a magnitude of smoke and heat in such a short period of time and created mass chaos, thus resulting in a crowd-wide panic towards the initial entry point. Also NFPA 101, Life Safety Code, section 13.2.3.6.1 states that the main entrance/exit shall be of a width that accommodates one-half of the total occupant load and shall be at the level of exit discharge or shall connect to a stairway or ramp leading to a street. If the owner of The Station Nightclub would have

At 2215 hrs, on November 28, 1942, Fire Alarm Headquarters from Box 1514, situated at Stuart and Carver streets, received an alarm. When the responding apparatus arrived they found a small car fire at the corner of Stuart Street and Broadway. After the fire was extinguished the firefighters were about to return to quarters when their attention was called to smoke emanating from the Cocoanut Grove Nightclub a few doors away. Upon their arrival at the entrance of the Broadway lounge on Broadway they encountered numerous people leaving the premises admidst the cries of “fire”. The chief in charge immediately ordered that a third alarm be sounded from Alarm Box 1521 which the alarm was received by fire alarm headquarters at 2223 hrs. A

There is some dispute to the cause of the fire, but most believe it was set by three inmates who intended to cause a distraction during dinner time, so as to make an escape in the commotion. Instead, they mistimed the ignition device which didn’t ignite until they were all locked up for the night (Latta). This idea was later cemented as the cause when two of the three men hung themselves from grief. There are still some, however, that believe the fire was a tragic accident and the prison officials used the three inmates as an excuse to avoid blame

The Nov. 1, 2014 fire on Noyes Street was the deadliest fire in Portland in 40 years. Police said that the building owner, Gregory Nesbit, did not keep the residence up to code, including fire exits. The fire was accidental, and started by an improperly disposed smoking material on the porch. Prosecutors still believe Nesbit has some responsibility for the deaths.

There was no sprinkler system inside this building but could have stopped the fire within a minute or seconds after the system turned on. This is another way that the fire could have been easily stopped before it turned into the massive tragedy that has been talked about as one of the deadliest catastrophes in New York City before 911. The New York Fire Department did everything they could to help extinguish the fire, but their ladders only went to the 6th floor, and the fire hoses didn’t reach past the 7th floor. This department had the most advanced equipment in the country and still wasn’t enough technology to save these women from burning to death. Some women chose to jump 80 feet to their death to avoid being burned to death, which is no way to die. “Within 18 minutes, it was all over. Forty-nine workers had burned to death or been suffocated by smoke, 36 were dead in the elevator shaft and 58 died from jumping to the sidewalks. With two more dying later from their injuries, a total of 145 people was killed by the fire. The workers union set up a march on April 5 on New York’s Fifth Avenue to protest the conditions that had led to the fire; it was attended by 80,000 people.” (History.com Staff, "Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire,"

States. The fire occurred on May 28, 1977 during the Memorial Day holiday weekend. It happened in a supper club in Southgate, Kentucky. To this day, it is the third deadliest nightclub fire in U.S. history. Located just six miles south of Cincinnati, Ohio, the Beverly Hills Supper Club was a large complex of banquet rooms and service areas that attracted a variety of entertainment acts.

The building was constructed in 1946, designed to be a nightclub. The same building had changed ownership and names numerous times, and had been incarnated as not just a nightclub but also a restaurant and pub. Exact numbers of occupants at the time of the fire is unknown, estimated to be between 440 to 458 persons. When the fire started at the Station Nightclub in West Warwick, Rhode Island, the venue was 100 people over capacity, but "even the legal number was based on a bogus standing-room formula," (Seligson, 2013). An estimated 450 people were inside when the fire occurred (FEMA, 2011).

The greatest lesson learned from this tragedy was the need for planned fire drills and accessible fire escapes. If the employers would have made it mandatory that all employees become familiar with the buildings layout, practice fire drills and know their closest fire escape, it would have aided the employees in the hour of despair. The biggest cause for death in this fire was a result of poor pre-fire planning. The building may be fire proof, but the people and contents inside are not.